Noise

Relevant Statutes:

Offshore Electricity and Noise Regulations 1997

Both the Electricity at Work and the Noise at Work regulations were applied offshore in February 1998. They do not apply to sea-going ships or aircraft. The reference to the Design and Construction Regulations have been revoked.

Other relevant statutes include:

The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1992 place duties on employers and the self employed to assess risks to employees and others in the workplace, and to provide appropriate health surveillance;
The Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 1992 place duties on suppliers of machinery to ensure essential health and safety requirements are met;
The Provision and Use Of Work Equipment Regulations 1992 require employers to take account, when selecting work equipment, of any risk posed by its use; and,
The Offshore Installations and Wells (Design and Construction, etc) Regulations 1996 contain provisions on noise protection in the accommodation and in outdoor workplaces on offshore installations.
Also read Noise Exposure and Control in the offshore Oil and Gas Industry (HSE)

Duty Holder

The principle duty holder is the employer (which could be a self employed person).
Employees also have duties which include following procedures, using equipment including ear protectors when provided and reporting any defects.

Purpose

These regulations are designed to prevent damage to people's ears. This damage is cumulative and irreversible and often occurs over a long period of time so that the individual concerned does not notice the deterioration. One simple guide can be used to indicate whether there may be noise levels with potential causing hearing damage. If you need to shout to be heard by someone about 2 metres away, the noise level is likely to be hazardous. The regulations refer to various levels of noise - called 'action levels' and when these levels of noise are reached employers are required to meet certain requirements. There are two types of 'action level' one relating to the daily exposure and the other relating to peak exposure.

Action Levels

The daily personal noise exposure is generally regarded as the total personal exposure to noise throughout the day, taking account of the average noise levels in working areas and the time spent in them. The daily exposure levels are calculated by taking the total noise levels an employee is exposed to during the day (that is the noise level x the time exposed to that level) and averaging that out over an 8 hour day no matter how long the actual working day is. Thus someone whose working day comprises 4 hours in a noisy environment and 4 hours in a quiet environment can be exposed to a higher level of noise than someone working 8 hours in the same place. Conversely, offshore, where the working day is 12 or more hours, the noise level to which an employee may be exposed should not exceed the total permitted over an eight hour period. Thus, for instance, operatives working in an environment above the action levels, on reaching their daily permitted dosage calculated over an 8 hour period should be allocated tasks in a quiet area for the remainder of that day's work.

The first action level means a daily exposure of 85 dB(A) - equivalent to underground train at full speed, electric drill.
The second action level means a daily exposure of 90 dB(A) - about the level of a heavy lorry at 7 metres.
The peak action level refers to very short pulses of sound (e.g. such as produced by a nail gun, or explosion) and is a peak sound pressure of 200 pascals.

Noise Assessment

When an employee is likely to be exposed to any of the action levels the employer must ensure a competent person makes a noise assessment to:

identify which employees are involved
to help him comply with the requirements below.

This assessment must be reviewed when it is suspected it is no longer valid or when there have been significant changes to equipment etc. Records of the most recent assessment must be kept.
Reduction of risk/exposure Employers must reduce the risk of damage to the hearing of his employees to the lowest level reasonably practicable

If an employee is likely to be exposed to the second action or peak levels then that exposure must be reduced so far as is reasonably practicable.

Note: the provision of ear protectors does not count.(see hierarchy of control measures - risk assessment).

Ear protection and ear protection zones

Employers must provide personal ear protection (which must comply with the PPE regulations) if either the second action level or the peak action level is exceeded. The ear protection must reduce the risk of damage to the hearing to below that risk arising to exposure to either the second action level or the peak action level as appropriate.
Employers must also supply suitable personal ear protectors to employees who are likely to be exposed to the first action level and who request them.

Ear protection zones are areas where it is likely that employees could be exposed to
the second action or peak levels.
Ear protection zones must have appropriate signs with text indicating that:

it is an ear protection zone
employees must wear personal ear protectors

Employers must ensure that employees do not enter ear protection zones unless they are wearing personal ear protectors.

Maintenance and use of equipment

Employers must ensure that equipment is used properly and maintained in an efficient state.
Employees must:

use/comply with protective measures provided by the employer
in particular must use personal ear protectors when provided
report defects

Provision of information, instruction, training

All employers who control the premises where his employee works shall provide any employee who is likely to be exposed to any of the action levels with information, instruction and training on:

The risk of damage to that employee's hearing
What steps the employee can take to minimise that risk
Under what circumstances an employee can obtain personal ear protectors and the procedure for doing so
The employee's own legal obligations

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